Innersphere - Phunk Remixes

Innersphere - Phunk Remixes
This is a bit like a classic Western shootout: two gunslingers face off – the old hand vs. the new kid in town – over the honour of a woman, in this case Shinedoe. Mark Broom and Ricardo Villalobos are both heavyweights in their respective fields. They both have many sides to their music. They both have discographies long enough to make a book out of. So which one will be left standing?

The Villalobos remix of 'Phunk' is a patient piece of house music that’s a real trip through shifting soundscapes. There’s an oriental-sounding synth, nicely compressed drums sliding up and down, and changing timbres which keep the track moving forward. It’s also a case study in Villalobos’ trademark long dropouts, where the low end subsides and we wait in anticipation for that little kick rather than a slamming return. It doesn’t have the anthemic appeal of the likes of 'Sinner in Me', but that could actually work in its favour: it’s less likely to burn out so fast, and more likely to be a dependable inclusion in the bag/laptop of the likes of Luciano and Bug. One to build a set early on or completely washout the braincells post 5 a.m.

On the flip, Mark Broom completely overhauls Shinedoe London style. As a producer, you never quite know what Broom is going to do next: his next record could be a tribal workout, tough techfunk or freaky minimal – it all depends on what day you catch him on. This time round Broom delivers a solid bit of audio warfare much in the vein of his Visitor collabs with Dave Hill. It's pretty much a looped set-tool, but this is techno in its rawest form: the razor-edged bass synth and tight drums will lick the paint off the club walls. If you want a nice little melody or hooky riff then perhaps look elsewhere, Broom isn't attempting to cover the bases here - leave that to Pop Idol.

If this is a battle of old school vs. new school, then its old school by a neck on the dancefloor.